


I Fall at Your Feet

by Succulint



Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, BDSM, M/M, The first chapter is sfw, and it works as a standalone, rating will eventually go up, so feel free to read just that one :), with no mentions of anything
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-22
Updated: 2019-12-22
Packaged: 2021-02-25 06:14:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21831331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Succulint/pseuds/Succulint
Summary: A chance meeting leads to a connection that has Anthony discovering new and exciting things about himself and the communities that he has only ever heard stories about. What was once a morbid curiosity, ends up as much more as the two experiment with different aspects of their relationship. Soon, he finds himself falling more and more for this man with whom he always seems to be on the same page.(Summary is a WIP)
Relationships: Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens)
Kudos: 9





	I Fall at Your Feet

**Author's Note:**

> The title is from Jesse Cook's 'Fall at Your Feet,' because it fits the dynamic I'm trying to portray later on. I wanted to make the title of this chapter something to do with grapes but it didn't work out, just imagine that it did.

Eden Insurance was a small agency situated in the Southern-most area of the UK. While it wasn’t as recognizable as the more mainstream Insurance companies in the country, it still had its fair share of loyal customers. Unfortunately, among those customers, many seemed to forget that at the end of the day, they were still mainly out for money. This of course, was not universal, but is an unfortunate pitfall that many such agencies seem to find themselves falling into. A more positive part of Eden was that the small nature of the company left very little room for competition from others both within and outside of the buildings walls. Most of the employees working there seems to be happy enough with their jobs, those employees are, unsurprisingly, mostly those that the members in higher up positions favoured. This allows for the company to continue forward with compaints from very few of its employees, few, being the key word. 

Nevertheless, Anthony has no idea why he agreed to accompany Bea to this workplace event. Sure, he did owe them from the time they lent him money, but he doesn’t understand why this is what they chose to do with that chance. It doesn’t seem like their scene either, and Anthony has a suspicion that Bea only brought him along for their own amusement. For the first hour or so, he forced himself to converse with his boring co-workers, mostly middle-aged men who complained about their wives and children. As much as he absolutely loved the topic (note the sarcasm), it got boring after a while. Instead, Anthony had decided to take to the bar, his tab apparently paid for by the company. If anything, he is going to take advantage of that. 

He sits at the bar nursing his wine and casts a narrowed gaze along the patrons in the room, hoping to deter any one of them that is even tempted to interrupt his alone time. Despite all his non-verbal warning, it only takes a few minutes for someone to clear their throat next to him in order to get his attention. He turns to his opposite side, ready to give the person a dirty look and leave it at that, but the sight of the man stops him in his tracks. It’s someone he’s never seen before, not that he takes the time to actually get to know everyone in the company, but Anthony can tell just by looking that this man isn’t someone who should have to settle for a desk job.

“Sorry to bother you but,” He gestures towards the empty seat beside Anthony. “Is this taken?” Somewhat starstruck, he nods and the man smiles with the radiance of his whole being. He sits down, and only then does Anthony notice that most of the bar is empty, so why this person would choose to sit here of all places is beyond him. 

Anthony takes another sip from his drink, trying to ignore the sense of awkwardness that comes from the silence now prevailing over them relentlessly. He waves over the bartender to refill his glass, downing almost half of the new order in one go. He’s hardly moved to place the glass back down on the bar before the man clears his throat again, “Is the wine any good?”

Hesitantly, Anthony raises an eyebrow at his question, “It’s alright I suppose. Can’t really expect anything fantastic from these ones.” He gestures around the room, particularly at the group of execs standing in the corner socializing. The man laughs beside him before waving to the bartender himself, ordering the same. 

“Understandable.” He takes a sip and considers the taste, letting out a soft sound of almost approval. He shrugs, taking another drink from the glass, “I’ve had worse.”

“Yep.” Anthony lapses back into silence, not sure how to continue given the strange opening to the interaction. Realizing that his glass is empty, he considers getting it refilled but decides against it. “So, what department are you from?”

The man looks at him, seemingly just as surprised as him that Anthony had continued the conversation at all. “Oh no,” He laughs. “I’m not a part of the company, Gabriel invited me.” He points a finger towards Anthony’s boss in the corner of the room as if it’s possible for him to not know exactly who he’s talking about.

“Him, really? Why?” Anthony raises an eyebrow, “No offence but I’m not the biggest fan.”

Taking another sip of his wine, the man smiles in a more relaxed way than before, “He’s not my favourite person either.” He says, sighing softly to himself. “But he is my cousin in some regard, so I can’t seem to get away from him.”

Ouch. “Damn that sounds awful.”

“Yes, well. You do get used to him eventually.” Although he seems convinced of this answer, the aggressive sip he takes from his glass immediately afterwards says otherwise.

And, as someone who has dealt with Gabriel for at least a few years now, Anthony somehow finds that fact hard to believe. “Yeah, right.”

Seeming to finally realize the situation they were in, the man quickly puts down his glass, which at this point is half empty, “Oh my, it seems that I forgot to introduce myself.” He holds his hand out, only slightly resembling that of the people that Anthony is used to dealing with, “My name is Ezra Fell..”

“Oh uh, Anthony, Crowley.” Embarrasingly, the entire time that they had been talking, he hadn’t thought to ask him his name either. It isn’t something he ever thought was necessary when he couldn’t stand most of the people he is forced to associate with. 

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Anthony.” He goes to shake his hand, which Anthony awkwardly reciprocates. He had never been one for handshakes, they had always seemed too formal, yet it almost seems natural that Ezra would be interested in the more formal aspects of meeting someone new. 

He seems to take a good look at Anthony, quite possibly for the first time that evening, and frowns, “You don’t seem to be enjoying yourself.”

Anthony nods, “Yeah no, this isn’t really my scene.”

Ezra leans forward in his seat, seeming incredibly interested in the conversation, or maybe it was merely him finally allowing himself to become more comfortable. “Why are you here if you seem to hate it so much?”

“Same reason as you,” He nods his head towards the same corner that Ezra had mentioned only a few minutes before. “They’re the short one that’s bothering Gabriel.”

“Oh, I see,” He laughs. “They do seem rather interesting.”

“That’s one way to put it.”

Distracted due to a brief lull in conversation, Ezra seems to turn much of his attention to the shelves of bottles behind the bar, particularly focused on the section that seemed to house most of their wines. “They have a strangely large selection,” He says. “I wonder if any of them are more interesting than that last one.”

“What are you suggesting exactly?” Even Anthony finds himself overwhelmed by the amount of choices in front of them, sincerely doubting that any of them are half decent. Most people he knows from work seem like the kind of people that drink Whiskey, and Bourbon, having no time for what they would call ‘women’s drinks.’ They wouldn’t know a good wine if their spouses smashed them over the head with one. It really is pathetic when he thinks about it. 

“I’m merely wondering how long it would take to go through a glass of each, judge the tastes.” Ezra seems to consider it for a moment, calculating with his fingers how long it would take for him to do so. 

Anthony is almost stunned, as much as he himself has always had an affinity for copious amounts of alcohol, he always just assumes that he is the only one who does it so casually. “Is that something you normally do, go to events just so you can find their best alcohol?”

“Well, not really. But I’m likely going to need something to get me through the rest of this.” Ezra sighs, shaking his head. “I’m quite surprised that Gabriel hasn’t come up here to harrass me yet.”

“Is that something he does often? I thought that was just a work thing.”

“Oh no, he seems to enjoy shoving his attitude in other’s faces.” He appears to come back to himself for a moment, an expression of regret briefly passes over his face. “Oh I do apologize for complaining so much to you dear, you were already having a bad time, no need to make it worse.”

“Oh no it's fine. Knowing I’m not the only one bothered by him is reassuring.” 

“Yes, quite.” He raises his glass once again in the direction of the bartender, asks for a refill of the first wine on the top of the shelf, along with a glass of water. “Would you care to join me?” He asks.

Against his better judgement, Anthony takes up the offer to drink more wine, on an unofficial mission to apparently have a taste from every single bottle they had. It ends up being a much more daunting task than he had originally thought, however, because after what seems like no time at all, he is pleasantly tipsy. They talk the whole while, finding out random facts about each other’s lives, just enough that Anthony really hopes he remembers the interaction in the morning. While he isn’t awful with handling his alcohol, he hasn’t gotten wine drunk in a while. 

Ezra makes everything so much better. It doesn’t take him long at all to completely forget that he is in the presence of other people that he knows. The man is effortlessly charming, in a way that Anthony doesn’t think he realizes himself. He almost feels like he would do anything that he asks, which is an almost dangerous thought. Dangerous if Anthony was sober anyways. It takes all his energy to not blurt out something about Ezra’s appearance that would likely make the other very uncomfortable. It’s just that the less aware he becomes, the more he is able to realize just how attracted he is to the other. Even at first glance, something about him seemed different, but Anthony isn’t about to ruin his first chance of friendship in a long time by getting too flirty during their first interaction.

If only Ezra got the same memo.

“You know, I disagreed when Gabriel told me I should get out more, but if there are more people like you out here then I don’t see a problem.”

“Is that why he invited you here? So you could, ‘get out?” He chooses to tactically ignore the rest of Ezra’s comment if nothing more than to save his sanity and his embarrassment. “That’s rich coming from the traditionalist with a stick up his arse.”

Ezra laughs, also seeming somewhat loosened by the copious amounts of wine they had drank, “Oh, that is a new one.”

They both stare at each other for a couple of moments, both unsure of how to continue the conversation, but also well aware that neither wanted it to stop there. Anthony cannot help but hope in this moment, that the pull he feels towards Ezra is a mutual one. He can guess by the look in his eyes, and the way his voice has slowly changed to a more comfortable tone that he’s right; he says nothing however, not wanting to get his hopes up, or ruin any possibility of his instincts being correct. 

“Corrupting the innocent again are we, Crowley?” The hand on his shoulder, as well as the voice of Gabriel himself, comes out of nowhere from behind them. Last Anthony checked, he was still wrapped in some sort of talk with an executive from another large company, guess that didn’t take long. Then again, Gabriel always had been persuasive when he wanted something. 

Anthony gently forces Gabriel’s hand off of his back, turning instead towards him. “Hardly.” The sass comes to him naturally now that the fear of being fired is off his back. He can be an arse all he wants now that he knows just how much Gabriel needs him. Plus, that would mean he won, succeeding at truly getting under his skin, something that Gabriel would never want to admit. “Sir.”

Gabriel gives him a hard glare and rolls his eyes, but says nothing in response. Instead, he turns his attention to Ezra, “I’m leaving, just thought you should know that I can see that I was right after all.” He fixes Anthony another cold stare, still managing to keep his usual businesslike smile. “Well, maybe.”

It doesn’t take long after that until he’s gone, sucking the enjoyment out of every interaction just like always.

Without missing a beat, Ezra sighs, “Oh I am going to be hearing about this forever aren’t I?”

“Yeah probably,” Anthony winces. “Sorry.”

But Ezra waves him off with one hand, rubbing at his temples with the other. “No, it’s alright. I’m used to his boasting, and his general dislike of me.”

The somewhat sad look he gives off seems to say that he isn’t used to it at all, at least not the disliking bit, but Anthony doesn’t say anything. It isn’t any of his business what Ezra’s family is like, they had just met after all. Yet he cannot seem to get it out of his head how unfair it all is. If anyone deserves a supportive environment, it was this man. 

“Well I think I’ve had enough for one day.” Ezra sighs, pushing away his empty wine glass and allowing the bartender to finally take it from them. He had been giving them somewhat dirty looks over the past few rounds, understandably enough. Anthony made a mental note to at least give them a generous tip. He’s surprised that the young man hadn’t quit already, having to serve so many people on his lonesome. 

Feeling somewhat that he had screwed up somehow, Anthony adjusts himself to gain a proper posture, unaware that he had even been leaning forward in the first place. Fucking Gabriel, ruining things for him again. “Oh, are you leaving?” 

“Yes, I really should get back home.” Ezra digs into his wallet, leaving a sizeable tip for the poor man who had been forced to deal with them for at least an hour by now. Damn. “I was in the middle of a book when Gabriel invited me here tonight, I would like to get back to it.”

“Alright yeah me too. I should check with Bea first, let them know I’m heading out.” Already, Anthony looks around to see if he can find them. They’re the shortest person he knows, so really it shouldn’t be too hard, not that they usually make any attempt to hide themselves regardless.

“I’ll leave you to it.” 

Anthony surveys the entire room, trying to minimize the amount of seaching he would have to do on foot. There aren’t nearly as many people as there had been when he’d gotten there, making it much easier to look at all of their faces and see that none of them match the person that he is looking for. “Looks like they left already, I don’t see them.” It wasn’t the first time that Bea had left him somewhere to fend on his own. In fact, there had been many times in which this exact same thing has happened. At least they seemed to have the decency to only do so when Anthony had his own way home. “They must have found their own ride.”

“Oh well that’s good,” Ezra says. “I guess that means you don’t have to wait for anyone then.”

Anthony nods, “Yeah.” He pauses for a moment, considering his options. He could just leave now, by himself, but that would mean he would run the risk of never getting to see Ezra again. And it would be strange to just ask him for his number out of the blue, wouldn't it? It would be very presumptuous of him, assuming that Ezra would even want to speak to him again. On the other hand, if he offered him a ride…? At the end of the day, well, he always had been weak to his own emotions. “Would you like me to uh, give you a lift?” He says, holding up his car keys. 

Ezra gives him a scandalised look, “If you’re going to drive you should eat something first.” He grabs Anthony’s arm, urging him to put the keys back into his pocket. “Wouldn’t want you doing that unless you’re sober.”

Anthony obliges, suddenly horrified that he had almost put them both in danger like that. He clearly hadn’t been thinking, or maybe it was just the wine.

Luckily for both of them, Ezra ends up being rather familiar with the area, somehow more than Anthony himself and is able to find them a cosy restaurant that is still open. They decide to not get any more wine and instead buy a couple of appetizers for both of them; paid entirely by Anthony this time, to somewhat balance Ezra’s payment at the bar earlier. It is completely worth it even just for the opportunity of seeing, and hearing, Ezra indulge in something he so obviously enjoys. Anthony catches himself staring on more than one occasion. 

By the time they get back to his car, it’s well past midnight, though they don’t manage to sit down inside until a couple of minutes later. Ezra is thoroughly invested in viewing the vintage Bentley from all possible angles, taking the time to compliment Anthony’s ability to keep it as pristine as he has.

Anthony drives much slower than he usually would, just barely above the speed limit through the now empty streets of London; Ezra certainly does not seem like the speed demon type after all. It’s almost too soon that he pulls up across the street from the old bookshop, waiting for his passenger to be going on his way. Just as he begins to accept that he will never get to see this beautiful, amazing man again, Anthony realizes that the car door has yet to open. Upon looking towards his companion, he is surprised to notice Ezra staring at him, though he looks away in embarrassment once he has been caught. 

“I would love for you to visit sometime.” He says timidly, clearing his throat “Oh! I have more wine upstairs, we could share a glass sometime?”

Oh. Wow. Anthony finds that any possible response gets caught in his throat. He feels the sudden urge to take him up on the offer right this moment, sleep be damned, but he knows that he shouldn’t overstep his boundaries. “Better than the kinds we’ve had tonight I hope?”

Ezra laughs, “Most certainly, though the last one wasn’t too awful.”

“I’m not so sure about that.” He teases, hiding his anxious energy behind the usual front. “Though I am definitely interested.”

Nodding to himself, Ezra finally opens the car door and lets out one foot onto the street. “You can come on by any night, I’ll be here.” Everything descends into complete silence for the first time since they had met as Ezra lets himself fully out of the car. He leans over one last time to wave at Anthony in the driver’s seat, smiling softly. “Bye now.”

Anthony waves back and Ezra finally closes the door. He walks across the street to his bookshop, looking back one last time to say another goodbye before finally allowing himself to turn in for the night. Taking a deep breath to collect himself, Anthony drives himself back to his flat across town. Even after he gets home and goes to bed, he finds that he cannot seem to forget Ezra or his damned smile. 

Oh no.

**Author's Note:**

> As it says in the tags, feel free to ignore any subsequent chapters if smut isn't your forte, because this will eventually be evolving to a discussion of kinks/sex and then leading to exploring those said things. As such, the rating for the next chapter will be raised to a 'Mature,' and later to 'Explicit.' I will also be updating the tags with more detail as I update. :)


End file.
